Blind Past
by Shido21
Summary: Brennan Sohma lost his memory a few months ago in what Akito tells him was a car accident. Not a real Sohma, Brennan harbors a secret similar to that of the cursed family. According to Akito, this is why they adopted him.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** Brennan Sohma lost his memory a few months ago in what Akito tells him was a car accident. Not a real Sohma, Brennan harbors a secret similar to that of the cursed family. According to Akito, this is why they adopted him. Brennan is best friends with Hatori, Shigure, and Ayame and from what little he can remember, that has always been the case. Even though they are so close, Brennan can sense that the three of them are keeping something from him, something so dark that if he found out it would tear him apart.

**Author's Note: **I'm kind of nervous about posting this for so many to read.This is my first Fruits Basket fic and it's not perfect, but I tried my best. I am a stickler for keeping things as canon as one can within the confines of the story, so please let me know if any of the characters are painfully off and please be gentle. Also, something to note about thehonorifics: I don't always use them and I realize thatthat can be insulting in certain contexts, but I don't mean it that way. Hatori and Brennan don't use honorifics all that much because Brennan isn't reallyJapanese and it just doesn't sound right to me withHatori.I know this may offend some of you, but please just overlook it. Ididn't want tokeep them out, but Ialso didn't want to overuse them.Please review, but no flames.

**Warnings: **This does contain an original character, so some plot elements might change slightly. If you don't like original character stories then please don't flame me, just don't read this one. This will _not_ contain any Shonen Ai unless it is canon. I thought this worth mentioning just in case someone fears I am pairing Brennan up with Hatori. I promise I'm not. I'm not pairing Brennan up with any of the characters for that matter. Also this _does _contain _spoilers_.

**(Major Spoiler Warning)**  
One more thing to note: Akito is male in this story, at least so far in my head. I know about the manga, but I didn't find out until after I started writing this. To stick with the manga would ruin what I had in mind, so please forgive me. I'm going to mix elements from both the anime and the manga. Part of it might deviate from the manga quite a bit. I'm not sure right now.

I hope you enjoy this story and please review. :)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fruits Basket, its stories or its characters. They belong to Natsuki Takaya. Some of the dialogue comes directly from the manga and that I do not own either. There's quite a bit of it in places, so I won't be able to point it out, but please be aware of that.

* * *

**Chapter One**

Take this blindfold off of me  
I'm crawling, grabbing, breathing for the way I can see. . .

. . .And I keep walking down that road  
And I keep running down that road

Delirious "Blindfold"

* * *

_...Rage. Pure, simple rage courses through his veins like flaming poison, burning away all humanity. Hands grip his wrists. A struggle... _

...A flash of light. A hand brushes his forehead. Deep blue eyes. Sorrow. Regret. A shadow looms over them, laughing. Emptiness...

A dull throbbing pain, originating at his temples slowly brought him to wakefulness. He gripped his head, hoping that his cool palms would stop the now searing pain of yet another of his headaches. He had been having these ever since he had lost his memory in a car crash so many months ago. Why was it that every time he tried to remember his past or got a hint at it, he got these headaches?

He groaned as a loud crash resounded from below. It had become a daily routine. Who needed an alarm clock when you had Yuki and Kyo living with you? If it wasn't Kyo shouting about something, it was Yuki sending Kyo crashing to the floor. This time, though, it didn't sound like either of them. There was no shouting or cursing. Odd. Curious, he dressed in jeans and a t-shirt and left his room, descending the stairs and looking around for the source of the crash.

"Oh, Brennan? I'm sorry, did we wake you?"

He looked down. Crouching over their young housekeeper was Shigure. The writer had his hand on Tohru's shoulder. Brennan slipped his hand to his head. What was the pervert up to now?

"What happened?" Brennan asked, his voice rough from sleep.

Shigure chuckled. "Oh you know Tohru. She tripped over her feet on her way to the kitchen." Tohru blushed at this. "I was helping her up when you came down."

Brennan studied him for a moment. His head was hurting too much to deal with this.

Tohru bounced to her feet quickly and bowed low. "I'm sorry I woke you, Brennan-san. I know how you don't get to sleep until really late. How clumsy of me," she said, going through one of her usual apologetic ramblings.

Brennan sighed. This wasn't helping the throbbing in his temples. He forced a smile. "It's ok, Tohru." He now forced his aching head to allow a concerned look cross his face. "You weren't hurt were you?"

The young girl shook her head. "Oh no. I'm fine."

His smile was genuine this time. He wasn't usually this grumpy. It's just that he wasn't a morning person and he was getting tired of these damn headaches.

Shigure was studying him. "You don't look so good. Bad night?"

Brennan brushed his hand across his face and headed for the kitchen. "Where are the trouble makers?" he shot over his shoulder.

"Yuki's still in bed and Kyo is. . ." Shigure began.

"I'm a trouble-maker am I!" a voice shouted from in front of him.

Brennan groaned. "Good morning Kyo," he muttered, reaching to open a cabinet.

Whoosh! Something flew past him. "No! No! Let me make breakfast. It's the least I can do for waking you up." It was Tohru. She grabbed the cabinet door and threw it open, pulling out various food items and shooing him to the table in the dining room.

Brennan figured that a better way to make up for waking him would be for her and Kyo to keep the noise down. He plopped down at the table and lowered his aching head into his hands. At the sound of something sliding across the table, he opened his eyes. Ibuprofen. Brennan looked up. Shigure was smiling at him with one of his know it all looks.

Brennan accepted the bottle. "Thanks," he muttered. Standing, he made his way back to the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. Tohru was busy making breakfast. He had never really liked the fact that she insisted on being housekeeper. She had already done enough for them all. He patted her on the head as he left with his mug. She wouldn't have accepted anything else.

"How can you drink that bitter crap?" Kyo snapped at him, as he sat down with his coffee.

Brennan smirked at the cat, saying with out words the sarcastic remark that would have normally passed his lips. And just to make sure that Kyo got the message, Shigure chipped in. "It's simple enough, Kyo. He puts it in his mouth and swallows."

Brennan flinched as Kyo started his first one-sided shouting match of the day. He popped one of the small pills in his mouth and washed it down with his coffee. Now he just had to wait for the children to go to school and then maybe his head would stop feeling like a bass drum.

"How can you be so loud so early in the morning?" an annoyed, soft voice asked.

Brennan looked up to find Yuki standing in the doorway to the dining room looking almost as bad as Brennan felt. Kyo now turned on Yuki, but lucky for Brennan, at that very moment Tohru entered the room with breakfast and the two sat down to enjoy it.

"So, Hatsuharu and Momiji start high school today?" Tohru asked, serving Kyo some rice. "I'm so excited. It'll be nice to see them at school."

Both Kyo and Yuki groaned in unison. Brennan just shook his head and began scooping some rice into his bowl. From the moment he had moved in with Shigure, he had refused to let Tohru serve him. It was enough that she was cooking for two older men. A high school girl shouldn't have to dish out food for them too. Shigure seemed of the same mind as he was now munching on some octopus.

"I will have to go down to the school then," Shigure said, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Haa-kun and Momitchi are like little brothers to me. I just _have_ to go by and behold their magnificence."

Everyone in the room turned a mistrustful and disgusted look in the writer's direction. Shigure didn't even flinch. He looked even more mischievous.

"I wonder what those stern, suspicious visages could possibly portend?" He faked a hurt look. "You don't think I'm going just to look at high school girls, do you?" He lifted his hands in a dramatic gesture, chopsticks included. "No, no no! Young people these days have no sense of romanticism!"

Brennan glared at him. He knew the real reason that Shigure was going up to the school and it didn't have anything to do with high school girls or Momiji and Haru. Akito was scheduled to make an appearance. The head of the family wanted to meet young Tohru. Hatori had told him yesterday. Maybe that was what had caused the horrible dream. Brennan gripped his head again and lowered it.

He didn't hate Akito, but there was definitely something about the head of the family that bothered him and he couldn't place it. Every time he did, one of his headaches would return.

". . .with me?" Shigure was asking him something.

Brennan looked up at him and raised an eyebrow, silently telling the writer that he had missed what Shigure had said.

"Are you going to come with me?" Shigure repeated, allowing a slight look of concern to cross his face. He usually hid his feelings from the others.

Brennan frowned. There would really be no point in his going. He pondered for a moment whether he should warn Tohru about Akito, but decided against it. Let the man see her in her natural state. Maybe she would be as good to him as she had been to every other Sohma she had met.

"No, I think I will stay here," Brennan said softly.

Tohru looked slightly disappointed and Brennan felt a little regretful. The last thing he needed, though, was to meet up with the head of the family and get another of his headaches. This one was just starting to go away.

"Honda-san, we should get ready for school." Trust Yuki to draw Tohru's attention off of sad things. Tohru nodded, cheerful once again and she, Yuki, and Kyo left the room to get their things for school.

"You know she wanted you to come too," Shigure said, leaning his head against his hand, a slight smile crossing his lips.

Brennan shook his head. "I know about Akito," he said, crossing his arms.

Shigure nodded. "You don't want to see him."

"No, I don't." Brennan frowned as he struggled again to place the thing he didn't like about Akito.

Shigure was studying him with yet another of his annoying know-it-all looks. "He's going to be disappointed."

_Disappointed_. The word echoed in his head, a different voice speaking it each time. He clenched his teeth, his eyes squeezing shut. His chest and throat tightened as disjointed memories swept over him one after the other.

_"I am so disappointed in you." Dark, sinister eyes pierced into his own._

Flash.

_"He'll be disappointed." Sad, deep blue eyes, studied him._

Flash.

_Disappointed. . ._

Brennan's head throbbed painfully with each memory flash. He felt his knees buckle underneath him. _Not again._

"Brennan!" Shigure's voice sounded so far away. Only the pain was real. Only the red tinged shadowy images were real: the images that seemed so familiar and yet he couldn't remember why.

Brennan groaned as he collapsed onto his back. He couldn't see. He couldn't breathe. He could feel blissful darkness closing in on him. A small hand clasped his, bringing him partially back.

"Brennan-san. Hang in there." It was Tohru. She sounded panicky. He felt distantly sorry for worrying her. Tohru's grip on his hand tightened and his eyes snapped open. He could see now. The housekeeper was staring down at him in deep concern. He squeezed her hand back. Her face relaxed and she smiled.

There was still a throbbing at his temples, but Brennan was starting to feel the memory seep away with all the others he ever had. He slowly tried to sit up. The pain in his head increased slightly, but not enough to stop him. He slipped his hand to his head and felt a hand grip his shoulder.

It was Shigure. He looked worried, which was unusual for the generally laid-back writer. Brennan also noticed that the others had left. Time was acting quite strange at the moment as if parts of it were being blocked out. He couldn't remember Tohru leaving.

"Are you alright?" Shigure asked him, looking into Brennan's eyes.

"Yeah," Brennan replied softly.

"Flashback?"

Brennan nodded, probing his mind slightly, trying to remember what it was that had set it off.

Shigure looked at him with an odd expression. Brennan couldn't figure out what it meant. "It was something I said, wasn't it?" Shigure lowered his head. "I'm sorry."

Brennan slowly got to his feet. "It's ok." He shook his head. "It's not like I can remember anyway," he added bitterly.

Shigure's eyes glinted mischievously again. "Well, look at it this way: now you have a legitimate excuse to go visit Haa-san."

Without a word, Brennan bent over, grabbed the ibuprofen bottle and chucked it at the writer's head. Luckily for Shigure, the novelist had expected the attack and ducked the flying bottle. Brennan grinned at Shigure as he left the room to deposit his coffee mug in the sink. Brennan knew that Shigure had done that on purpose to get his mind off of the flashback.

"So, where did the others go?" Brennan shot over his shoulder as he headed for the kitchen, still trying to remember what had happened.

Shigure stood up and moved towards the doorway. "They went off to school." He smiled another mischievous smile. "You know Tohru wanted to stay by your side and make sure you were ok."

Brennan shook his head as he slipped his coffee mug in the sink. "She needs to be more concerned for herself," he snapped, giving Shigure a dark look.

He knew that Akito and Shigure were using Tohru. He also knew that Akito was going to the school to investigate this girl who had wrestled away "his" Yuki. Brennan didn't like it one bit. Sometimes he felt like Tohru was too good for all of them. He agreed with Hatori. It was their job to protect her and the younger Sohmas. Even though Brennan couldn't remember what his link to the family was, he felt deep down inside a connection to them that couldn't be broken by his amnesia.

"Well, I must get ready Brei-san," Shigure called from the hallway. "I'll see you later."

"Good luck with Akito," Brennan called, smiling and trying to communicate to Shigure that he wasn't mad at the writer.

Shigure smiled back and then disappeared from sight. Brennan leaned back against the counter. It was true that he had planned on visiting Hatori even before his attack, but now it was required of him by the head of the house and that didn't make him too happy. He just prayed that he wouldn't run into Akito while he was there.

Shrugging to himself, Brennan pushed away from the counter and headed upstairs for his room. He wanted to take a shower before he left in hopes of clearing away the remaining fog left over from his flashback. Grabbing a towel, a pair of khakis and a black t-shirt from his room, he headed towards the bathroom.

* * *

Showered and dressed, Brennan crossed the hall back to his room. Inside, he stepped over to his chest of drawers and slid a chain off the top. Attached to the chain were dog tags. He couldn't remember where he had got them or from whom. The name Anne Ravencloud was pressed into them. He had no idea who this woman was only that she couldn't be Japanese. Akito had told him that they had no clue how he had gotten the dog tags only that he had been found with them. 

Shrugging, Brennan threw the chain over his head and grabbed his long-sleeved white shirt off his desk chair. Pulling it on, he left the room and descended the stairs. Shigure was no where to be found. Brennan walked over to the front door and slipped on some black hiking boots and left.

It was a beautiful, sunny day outside. A nice breeze swept through his shoulder-length black hair. Brennan smiled. The day was starting to look up. It was a perfect day for a motorcycle ride. He looked around for his bike and found it left of the house.

Approaching it, he couldn't help but remember the first time that Shigure showed it to him after he had lost his memory. At the time he couldn't believe that he had ever ridden a motorbike. The moment he got on it, though, he understood what his past self must have understood. The thrill of the wind in his face as he flew down the road was a good enough reason to him to ride it.

Brennan climbed onto the bike. Akito and Hatori would chastise him for not wearing a helmet, but he didn't care. He loved the thrill of the danger. Revving up the bike, he rode it out onto the street, going as fast as the bike could. There were no police in the area. The faster he went the quicker his worries about the past would vanish.

The wind whipped his hair back, massaging his aching temples. He truly felt alive. There was no feeling quite like it. The scenery flew past in a blur. Then an image flashed inside his head: a smiling Haru, riding behind him. He knew that he had never done that before, at least since he had lost his memory. If he hadn't been riding the bike, he would have stopped to think about it, but going at the speed that he was going, he didn't risk losing any concentration. He would have to ask someone about it later.

As Brennan neared the Sohma house, he slowed his bike down. He didn't need to risk getting Hatori or Akito angry. He could almost hear them telling him off for going at the speed he was going without a helmet. He pulled in right in front of the gate that led into the Sohma compound. Dismounting his bike, he approached the gate, pushed it open and entered, taking in the beauty of the compound.

It was always beautiful in the spring at the Sohma household. All the flowers and trees were in bloom and the breeze carried the loose petals down to the ground. It was almost like sweet scented snow. The soft chirp of a bird nearby caused Brennan to look up in the branches of a nearby tree. A tiny, white bird was studying him. Brennan flinched. That was one of Akito's birds. He just hoped that the head of the family wasn't here.

Turning away from the tree, Brennan looked around for Hatori's office. Finding it, he followed the brick walkway to the left until he came to the sliding front doors of the doctor's work place. Brennan rapped his knuckles on the wooden frame of the door and waited. No answer. He tried again. Again, no answer.

"Hatori?" Brennan called out, sliding the door slowly to the side.

After taking his shoes off, Brennan hesitantly entered the office and looked around. There was no one there. He groaned. That meant that Akito was probably still there. Brennan turned back around and shut the door. Well, he was just going to wait here. He didn't want to see the head of the house today and Akito was too busy anyway.

Turning away from the door, Brennan padded further into the room. His eyes fell on a bookshelf on the right side of the room. On the middle shelf was a picture of a beautiful woman. Brennan had seen this picture many times, but every time he looked at it, it gave him a weird feeling. Hatori had told him the story of Kana. Brennan could remember the day the doctor had told him as if it were yesterday, but there was something about the picture that went deeper than a mere memory of a story. It was as if he had met her before, as if he had been there as the events that ruined Hatori's life transpired.

Before he knew what he was doing, Brennan grabbed the picture off the shelf and took it over to a couch in the back left corner of the room. Sitting down, Brennan stared at the photograph. He might as well try to remember even if he did get the headaches again. The day had already been full of them anyway. But try as he might, he couldn't get the picture to tell him what his mind was blocked from. He soon found himself drifting off to sleep, the photo in his hand coming to rest on his lap.

* * *

The feeling that a presence was looming over him, caused Brennan's eyes to snap open. Standing over him was Hatori. It looked as if the doctor had been reaching down to retrieve the photograph. Both of them jumped at the same time and Brennan thought he saw a smirk flit across Hatori's face. 

Brennan picked up the picture from his lap and held it out to Hatori. "Sorry. I was just trying to remember."

Hatori's deep blue eyes studied his grey ones and then he accepted the picture. _Blue eyes!_ Brennan felt his heart leap up into his throat. The dream from that morning. Was it Hatori? Brennan was about to ask, until he saw the expression on Hatori's face. The doctor was staring down at the picture, his eyes softening as he studied the photo.

"Tohru reminds you of her, doesn't she?" Brennan asked softly, studying Hatori.

Instantly the mask went back up and Hatori turned his back on him, walking over to the bookshelf to put the photo back on the shelf. Brennan regretted speaking now. He was about to apologize when Hatori faced him. There was a bitter sweet smile on his face.

"Yes she does," he said, crossing the room to his desk and sitting down. "Such warmth in her heart."

Brennan nodded. His gaze drifted over to the large window near Hatori's desk.

_When snow melts, what do you think it becomes? _

Huh? Ah...um, well...hmm. It becomes spring!

Brennan gasped. _Tohru? Kana? Who was it that spoke? What was this about?_ Brennan gripped his head as a searing headache tore into him. _Damn it! Not again._

The sound of a chair scraping the wooden floor brought him back slowly. He looked up to see the blurry figure of Hatori approaching him. Shaking his head to try to clear it, Brennan tried to bring his vision into focus, but was having trouble. Hatori had a twin as he knelt down near Brennan. Brennan closed his eyes trying to calm his racing heart and ease the pain in his aching head. He prayed that the next time he opened his eyes he would see normally again.

"Brennan?" Hatori's deep, quiet voice eased him back from the precipice of unconsciousness.

He slowly opened his eyes and was relieved to see only one Hatori studying him in concern. Rubbing his hand over his face, he smiled at Hatori to let him know he was ok. The doctor backed away and went back to the chair at his desk.

"How many have you had today?" Hatori asked, leaning back in the chair, looking pensive.

Brennan hesitated. He had a feeling he was about to get told off for not getting enough sleep, but damn it, it wasn't his fault. "Counting this one? Two. . .no. . .three."

Hatori raised an eyebrow. "Three?"

Brennan nodded. "I didn't get a chance to tell you. As I was riding over here, I had a short flashback, this one without a headache."

Hatori was almost successful at hiding the shocked look that crossed his face, but Brennan caught it anyway. "What is it?" he asked, leaning his head back against the couch to stare up at the ceiling. At least it was almost guaranteed he wouldn't have another flashback by studying the roof.

"Nothing," Hatori said softly. "This is good. Maybe someday you will regain your memory and the headaches will stop."

Brennan's head snapped up. He winced as his head throbbed for a second. "Do you really think so?" He kept his tone neutral, not allowing any hint of the excitement mixed with dread that he felt at the moment to leak through.

Hatori nodded. His expression grew dark and Brennan knew the lecture was coming. "However, you need to make sure that you get enough sleep. I can't stress this enough. It is true that when you don't sleep you get more flashbacks, but these are much more dangerous. If you get one powerful enough it could kill you."

Brennan leaned his head back against the couch again. He had heard this a thousand times. And every time he heard it, he couldn't help but wonder what the point of living was if he couldn't remember who he was. His eyes drifted over to look at Hatori. He did have his new life with his friends in this family, but he couldn't help feeling that they were keeping something from him.

At the sound of the floor creaking, Brennan lifted his head to see Hatori walking towards the door.

"I will be right back," Hatori said, facing him. He tossed something at him.

A hard-bound book landed on Brennan's lap. He picked it up and studied it. _Side-effects of Amnesia_. Brennan looked up at Hatori.

"Read it," the doctor said, leaving the room.

Brennan opened the book and scanned the table of contents. It was one of Hatori's western books. A chapter on memory recovery caught his eye. He quickly turned to the correct page and poured over the text there. It basically reiterated the warning that Hatori had just given him. He glared at the door the doctor had just left through. He nursed the idea of throwing the book at Hatori the moment he stepped through the door, but upon turning the page something else caught his eyes. It was a heading entitled _How to Get Around The Headaches_. Brennan devoured the text following it.

_There are only a few ways to get around the headaches that many amnesiacs suffer during flashbacks. Getting plenty of rest is one of the ways. If the mind is rested then it can handle the overflow of memories much better. Another way to avoid the headaches completely is not really in the control of the patient. It is to have a flashback while adrenaline is pumping through their veins. . ._

Brennan gasped. So that was what had happened earlier. Why hadn't Hatori told him about this earlier?

"I just found that book the other day. I thought it might be useful."

Brennan jumped. He hadn't heard Hatori enter. The doctor had a steaming mug of something in his hands. He walked over to Brennan and held the mug out to him. "You can borrow the book, but for now I want you to drink this and get some sleep."

Brennan set the book on an end table near the couch and then accepted the mug. "What is this?" he asked, sniffing at the contents of the mug. It smelled of mint.

"Tea," Hatori replied, setting a pillow against one of the armrests of the couch. "It will help you sleep."

Brennan frowned. "It doesn't have sleeping pills in it, does it?" Hatori had tried that on him before and he hated the hangover they gave him.

Hatori smirked. "No. It's herbal. It will fight away any dreams that might disturb your rest."

Brennan studied the doctor for a minute and then sipped the tea. It didn't taste bad and after a few sips of it, he felt a calm soothing feeling wash over him. As he drained the last bits of the tea, he set the mug next to the book on the end table and lay down on the couch. The second his head touched the pillow he was out.

* * *

"I see you finally got Brei-san to get some sleep." 

It took all of Brennan's will not to open his eyes. It was kind of ironic that he would wake to those words.

A chair creaked as if the person in it was shifting their weight. "It really didn't take a lot."

Shigure's voice sounded worried now. "The flashback from this morning was the worse I have ever seen."

"Do you know what caused it?"

Shigure gave an uncomfortable sort of laugh. "Actually, I think it was something I said."

The chair slid back and the soft pad of footsteps crossed the floor to what Brennan imagined was the window. "A word triggered it? He really _isn't_ getting enough sleep."

"Don't glare at me! Blame Kyo and Yuki. You know how the two of them fight."

"There's something more to it than that." Hatori sounded pensive. "He's having dreams again."

Brennan flinched. It was starting to sound like Hatori was going to prescribe the damn sleeping pills again.

"What can we do about that?"

The sound of footsteps grew closer. A scraping noise just above his head, nearly caused Brennan to jump. It sounded like Hatori had just picked up his mug. "There's a tea that he can take before going to bed that will help that."

"Will it lessen the number of flashbacks he has?" Shigure had an odd tone in his voice.

Brennan shifted his weight a little. It would look suspicious if he just lay there stiffly. That was his mistake.

"Let's take this outside," Hatori said in a whisper.

Shigure must have agreed because the sound of two pairs of footsteps crossed the room and the door slid shut behind them. Brennan's eyes popped open.

The tea idea didn't sound too bad. It didn't feel like it had any bad side effects like the sleeping pills. All it did was calm him down and keep away the dreams. But did he really want the dreams to stop? Sometimes he could remember them and they gave him hints about his past.

He sat up and lowered his head into his hand. It would most likely get rid of the headaches, though. There were other ways that he could remember his past and one of these he could do with out the headaches. He would have to read that book Hatori had given him.

He stood, grabbing the book and headed for the front door. He slid it open softly. Shigure and Hatori were sitting on the porch talking. Shigure was leaning his head on his hand and Hatori had a cigarette in his hand. Brennan silently walked out onto the porch and leaned back against the wall, pulling the book open to the page he had been reading earlier.

They hadn't even noticed him enter or at least Shigure didn't. "If you lock someone up in a dark room for a long, long time and mentally torture them. . .it leaves indelible scars," Shigure said, an odd tone in his voice.

Brennan frowned. Who were they talking about? He had a feeling it had something to do with Akito. Shigure usually reserved that tone of voice for the head of the family. But was he the one being tortured or was he the torturer?

Hatori pulled out a lighter. "But Akito doesn't understand." He lit the cigarette in his hand. "If someone can cause those scars there is sure to be someone who can heal them."

Shigure looked over at Hatori. "That fact gives me more than a little courage," he said, his voice sounding quite lighter than it had earlier. "And about what he said--Tohru-kun is cute. She's adorable."

Hatori blew out the smoke from his cigarette. "Coming from you, that sounds criminal."

"That's for sure," Brennan added, causing Shigure to nearly leap off the porch. Hatori just looked at him.

"Brei-san!" Shigure exclaimed, turning slightly so that he could get a better look at Brennan.

Hatori was studying him with his indecipherable blue eyes. "We didn't wake you, did we?"

Brennan shook his head. "I don't think a typhoon could have woke me." He lowered his head. "That tea you gave me really helped," he said softly. "Thanks."

Hatori nodded still looking at him with his piercing eyes. "I have a packet of it for you. You need to take it before you go to bed every night," he said, taking another puff from his cigarette.

Brennan didn't say anything. He just looked out over the compound, staring at the flowering trees. It was true that he liked spring, but some part of him preferred winter. Maybe it was his cynical nature, but the quiet, lonely atmosphere of winter seemed more appropriate to him than any other season. It matched the emptiness he felt inside due to his memory loss. He suddenly found himself longing for a strong drink. He didn't usually like to drink, but every once in a while he found that mixing alcohol with his coffee helped him get through the day.

"Brei-san!"

He let his eyes focus and meet Shigure's brown ones. The writer tossed a bottle at him.

"I brought that for you. I figured it could be of some help," Shigure said, winking.

Brennan looked down at the bottle. It was scotch. Hatori looked at both of them sternly. Brennan ignored him, going back inside to pour himself a cup of coffee. Back outside, he poured some of the alcohol into his coffee and then slid the bottle back to Shigure.

"Thanks," he said softly, taking a sip of the drink and sighing as the soothing effects of the alcohol washed over him. He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"Look at that sunset," Shigure exclaimed.

Brennan opened his eyes and found himself agreeing with the writer. The perfect ending to a not so perfect day. Brennan looked over at Hatori and saw the doctor smiling one of his rare smiles. Maybe having friends like these was enough even for someone with no memory of their past.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Sorry if the story looks bad. I just found out extra spaces and non-language or whatever characters are not allowed. I'm used to using stars for dividers, but I used the dividers they insist on us using here. I wish I could resize them or something. I also wish my story wouldn't look so cramped. I haven't used this site in a long time, so this surprised me.Oh well. I guess this is easier on their servers. 

I hope you enjoyed the story. I'll try to get Chapter Two up soon.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** Thanks to EmiRay and NaruNaru.O.k for the reviews. EmiRay: I'm sorry that you thought the first chapter was a bit boring. Hopefully this chapter will be more exciting for you. Thank you for wanting to stick with this story despite how you felt and thank you for being honest. NaruNaru.O.k: I'm glad you enjoyed the story and thanks for your interest. I'm glad you like Brei-san. More of his history will be revealed in this chapter.

Please enjoy and review. Keep in mind all the warnings and disclaimers mentioned in the previous chapter. I hope you enjoy this and please be gentle.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

_Run, wolf warrior, to ends eternal  
Through the wreckage of the death of the day  
Scent of silence under starlight spinning  
A captured beast within a human skin _

Are you searching for long lost landscapes  
Lit by flowers and crystal cascades?  
Where the lamb lies down with the lion  
Where the wolf is one with the wild

"run, wolf warrior, run"  
Wolf's Rain soundtrack

* * *

The wind ran through his fur as he raced through the woods, chasing a rabbit. It was a gorgeous, chilly day. The chill exhilarated him. It was a break in the fastly approaching warm weather. The forest was quiet except for a few bird cries, but then he figured that the animals were all scared of him. 

As he caught up to the rabbit he jumped over it, snapping at it playfully. The rabbit scurried away. He brought his head up to sniff at the wind. It smelled of spring despite its crispness and distantly he could just make out the scent of a stream. Turning in the direction of the scent, he sprinted after it, weaving in and out of the trees.

* * *

Brennan closed his eyes as another fresh breeze blew. He always enjoyed the wind. It smelled of freedom, traveling the world and seeing many things. It had been there when he had lost his memory. It knew who he really was even if he didn't. 

Brennan sighed and looked back down at the book he was reading. It was the one Hatori had given him the other day. He had read quite a bit of it already, but hadn't found it of much help. It just really confirmed what he was feeling already. The most useful section to him was the one he had read the day the book was given to him. Now he just had to figure out how he was going to accomplish having a memory flash while experiencing high adrenaline.

There was a very small list of things that got his blood pumping and they didn't always work. Riding his bike was one of them. Fighting was another, but he wasn't going to pick a fight with someone just so he could have a memory flash. And those were about the only things.

Brennan sighed again, banging his head lightly against the tree he was leaning back on. Was there nothing else he could do to get his memory back? What was Hatori keeping from him? Some dark secret? Was it better if he didn't get his memory back?

He slammed the book closed and then leaned forward to stare down at his reflection in the stream. Shoulder-length black hair framed a solemn face. Grey almond-shaped eyes looked almost canine. A silver earring in his left ear spoke of possibly a rebellious past. Who was he?

He rubbed his hand across his face and then through his hair. Brennan glanced down at his watch. It was nearing lunch time. He figured he should head back.

Picking up his book, Brennan stood, striding over to the path and taking his time as he headed home. The leaves rippled as the breeze touched them. He smiled as he watched two squirrels playing tag. They chattered at each other as they raced through the trees and out of sight.

He was briefly wondering what Tohru was going to make for lunch when he stepped on a tree root and felt his ankle twist underneath him. He gasped in pain and collapsed to the ground.

"Shit!" he swore under his breath as he sat up, gripping his ankle. He gingerly tried to move it to the right and gasped as a sharp pain greeted him. Just lovely, he had twisted it. How was he supposed to get back to the house now?

"Damn it!" he snapped, as he forced himself to stand up, keeping all his weight on his uninjured ankle. It was just his luck, but then he guessed he should have been paying attention to where he was going.

Cautiously, he put a little weight on his injured ankle. It held, but it wasn't happy about it. Wonderful. He would have to limp the rest of the way home.

* * *

The house had never looked so wonderful, that is, until he stepped inside. 

Crash!

"YOU'RE NOT A BROTHER OR ANYTHING ELSE TO ME!"

Who was Yuki hollering at? Brennan wondered, wiping the sweat from his walk off his face.

"Ah, Brei-san! Where have you been?" It was Shigure. He seemed to be trying to ignore the loud crashing noises behind him.

Brennan lowered himself to the floor and reluctantly pulled off his boots. They were the only support he had for his twisted ankle. He winced as he tugged the boot off of his injured ankle. It had swelled up.

"What did you do to your ankle?" Shigure asked, flinching as he saw Brennan move to stand up.

Brennan leaned back against the doorframe. "I twisted it on the way back here. What did Tohru make for lunch?"

Shigure motioned for him to stop. "You stay. You need something to wrap that ankle up with. I'll be right back." With that the writer left the room.

Brennan slid back down to the floor, sighing. Why did he have a feeling that something funny had happened that Shigure was keeping from him?

"Oh! Brennan-san you're back!" Tohru exclaimed upon entering the foyer.

"Hi Tohru," Brennan said, smiling at her.

Tohru suddenly looked puzzled. "Why are you sitting out here by yourself?" she asked, squatting next to him precariously. Her eyes hit his swollen ankle. "Oh! You're hurt."

Brennan met her eyes. "It's ok," he said softly.

"Oh! Brei-san you're here!" Aaya bounced into the foyer and into Tohru.

It happened in a flash. Tohru tipped over and hit Brennan in the chest, her arms wrapping around him reflexively.

Poof!

A timber wolf sat where Brennan had moments before. Brennan felt his consciousness slip back as the instincts of the wolf took over. He hated it when women transformed him. He lost control of his animal form and therefore whoever transformed him was in danger.

As the wolf, he felt his lips curling back as he snarled at Tohru. _Get away!_ he screamed silently. Tohru just sat there trembling. Damn it, he hated this. _Run!_ he shouted futilely at her as he felt himself about to snap.

Lucky for Tohru, Shigure showed up in time to save her. Due to his form, Shigure was able to communicate to the wolf in Brennan. Holding his hand out, he slowly moved towards Brennan, mentally calling out to the wolf. At first the wolf wasn't sure, he let out a warning snap at Shigure, but the dog's persistence paid off. Never taking his eyes off of Brennan, Shigure brought his hand to rest on the wolf's head and gently scratched its ears.

Poof!

A naked Brennan was now sitting on the floor being pet by Shigure. Brennan glared at the writer for a second. Tohru squealed and turned away, but not before her eyes fell on a strange scar on Brennan's side. Brennan noticed and turned his back on them. "Sorry," he muttered, pulling on his clothes as fast as possible with a twisted ankle.

"What's going on!" a loud voice demanded. Kyo's head popped up in the doorframe. Yuki hovered behind him looking worried.

Shigure glanced at the two. "Nothing," he said softly. He sounded oddly preoccupied.

"I'm so sorry!" Tohru whined, her back still turned towards Brennan.

"It's not your fault," Brennan muttered, taking the bandage from Shigure's hand and proceeding to wrap his injured ankle.

"No it's actually mine," a flamboyant voice replied. "I bumped into Tohru. Sorry Brei-san."

"It's ok, Aaya," Brennan said, slowly standing.

Seeing that his brother was in the room, Yuki shook his head and left, Kyo close behind him.

Shigure gestured at Aaya. "As you can see Aaya is visiting us. He came to see Tohru."

"I sure did!" Aaya said, grinning. "She is truly a magnificent young lady."

Tohru blushed deep red. "Oh, I don't know," she muttered.

Brennan limped over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "You truly are," he said softly, leaving the room for the kitchen.

In the kitchen, he limped over to the refrigerator and pulled it open, popping his head inside to find something to eat. He spotted the take out box immediately and pulled it out. As he turned towards the microwave to heat up his dinner, Shigure entered the kitchen.

"Aaya took Tohru out to eat, so I'm afraid we had to rely on take out," Shigure explained, leaning on the doorframe.

Brennan nodded. "I take it Yuki isn't too happy to see his brother here?"

"Well, I wouldn't go so far as to say that. . ." Shigure began.

Crash!

"YOU STAY AWAY FROM HONDA-SAN!"

Brennan raised an eyebrow, smirking.

Shigure shrugged. "Sibling rivalry?"

Brennan snorted. The microwave beeped and he retrieved his meal from it, limping towards the dining room. Aaya was sitting at the table inside, looking slightly battered. Yuki, Kyo and Tohru were no where to be found.

Brennan sat down across from Aaya. Shigure excused himself, explaining that he had some writing to do.

Brennan sighed. "I know you've probably been yelled at all day, but you really need to be careful, Aaya. I could have killed Tohru."

Aaya lowered his head. "I know, Brei-san. I'm truly sorry."

"Just be careful from now on." Brennan studied Aaya. "So, how are you and Yuki?" he asked, munching on his meal.

"Not too well, I'm afraid," Aaya replied somberly. "Yuki just can't seem to accept me."

Brennan nodded. "I wouldn't worry too much about it, just yet." He met Aaya's eyes. "These things take time. Yuki needs to get to know you better first."

Aaya smiled. "You're right. I just have to keep trying." He studied Brennan for a moment. "So, tell me, how have you been doing?"

Brennan kept his eyes trained on his food as he replied, "Ok."

"According to Ha'ri you're not," Aaya said. "Something about three flashbacks in one day?"

Brennan groaned. He had been counting on Aaya to not bring this up. "I'm fine. Hatori gave me something to help me deal with it."

Aaya mimicked a hurt expression. "I'm terribly hurt by the fact that you feel like you have to hide this from me," he said in his most flamboyant, dramatic voice. "You know you can come to me about anything."

Brennan lowered his head and gave a quiet smile then proceeded to fling his chopsticks at Aaya. One of them bounced off the snake's head and both he and Brennan burst out laughing. It had really been a long time since he had laughed like this. Trust Aaya to be the one to instigate it.

"I actually want to ask you about one of the flashbacks," Brennan said, after they had caught their breath enough to talk.

Aaya nodded, trying to look serious and failing as usual.

"I was on my bike, heading towards the main house the other day, when I had a vision of Hatsuharu riding with me," Brennan explained, leaning his head against his hand. "Did that happen before I lost my memory?"

Aaya looked pensive for all of two seconds and then grinned. "You used to do that all the time. Haru-kun was like a little brother to you."

Brennan closed his eyes and tried to remember. He realized that he was treading on dangerous ground, but he didn't care at the moment. How hard it must have been on Haru, losing his adopted big brother. Brennan hadn't really spent a whole lot of time with Haru since he had lost his memory. Brennan now regretted not going to orientation the other day. He pushed himself to try to remember spending time with Haru and then there it was: the familiar tightening of his chest and the headache to follow.

_"Want to ride today, Haru?" _

"Can I?"

"Sure."

The sound of an engine revving up and the whoop of a little boy excited about his first ride on a motorcycle followed.

His headache wouldn't allow anymore. He gripped his head, gritting his teeth as wave after wave of pain crashed into his head. A hand on his shoulder brought him back. His eyes popped open to meet Aaya's worried ones.

"I'm ok," Brennan said softly, pulling away from Aaya.

Aaya backed away a little. "It looks like Ha'ri's plan is working," he said, grinning. "Trust Ha'ri to come up with a way to help you out."

Brennan nodded, smiling to himself. If anyone else had been there with him, he would have gotten a lecture or a suffocating number of questions inquiring as to whether he was ok. He guessed that Aaya was right. He could go to the snake for anything.

"Well, tell me what was it about?" Aaya asked, clasping his hands in front of him.

Brennan brought his hand to his head which was still aching slightly. "Haru. . ." He paused as he tried to remember. "He was really young and he wanted a ride on my bike."

Aaya lifted an eyebrow. "And did you let him?"

Brennan nodded. He made a mental note to visit Haru sometime in the future.

"So, how has Ha'ri been?" Aaya asked, his eyes shining as they always did when he talked about Hatori.

Brennan frowned. "Not too good."

"He must miss having my magnificent presence around. I must go see him," Aaya said, gesturing to himself as if he were king of some great kingdom.

Brennan lowered his head. "He's working himself to death," he muttered, remembering the deep lines under Hatori's eyes from his last visit.

Aaya grew serious. "I'll talk to Gure-san. Maybe he can think of a way of getting Ha'ri away from work for a while."

Brennan nodded. "Good idea."

"Are you going to visit Ha'ri today? If so, I may go with you."

Brennan shook his head. "No, Hatori said he was going to be really busy today. Besides, you need to spend time with your brother, right? That's why you're here isn't it?"

Aaya's eyes widened in shock. He stood up. "You're absolutely right." With that he turned and flounced out of the room calling, "Oh Yuki!"

Brennan shook his head and followed, throwing away his empty food container. While he was in the kitchen, he poured himself a cup of coffee, taking it upstairs to his room.

* * *

A quiet folk tune wove its way through out Brennan's room as he strummed on an old acoustic guitar, his thumb thrumming across the strings at a slow, rhythmic pace. He was seated on his bedroom floor with his eyes closed, letting the music wash away his headache. Occasionally he would take a sip from the coffee mug sitting at his feet. 

Brennan had been at this for a while, when there was knock at his door. He slipped his hand to the strings, silencing them. "Come in," he called out, turning his head towards the door.

It slowly slid open to reveal Yuki. He entered the room quietly, a serious look on his face.

"What is it?" Brennan asked softly, setting the guitar down on the floor and gesturing for Yuki to sit. He had a guess at what this was about.

"Can I ask you something?" Yuki asked, sitting across from Brennan.

Brennan nodded, studying Yuki. The rat seemed to be worried about something.

"It's about Nii-san. You're friends, right?" It was Yuki's turn to study him.

Brennan sighed, leaning back against his bed. "Yes, we're friends," he said simply.

Yuki looked pensive and almost hesitant to ask his next question. Brennan remained silent, letting his adopted cousin work out his feelings. "What. . .what was it about my brother that made you want to be friends?"

"Well, he really didn't give me a choice," Brennan said, smirking. "He has a knack for lightening up any situation no matter how dark it is," he went on to explain. "He sticks by his friends no matter what."

Yuki smiled slightly. "I. . .can see that. But doesn't he get on your nerves?"

Brennan sighed. "Not. . .really," he replied, pausing to choose his words carefully. "Ayame just takes some time getting used to."

Yuki considered that for a while. "You're probably right," he said softly, standing. "Thanks, Brennan."

Brennan got to his feet, keeping his weight off his injured ankle. "We better go down for dinner," he replied, limping to the door.

Yuki nodded and the two left for the dining room.

* * *

"So, how's your shop going Aaya?" Shigure asked, munching on some of the delicious rice that Tohru had made. She was still in the kitchen, bringing in the rest of the food. 

"Business is booming as usual," Aaya replied, grinning.

"Tohru this is wonderful," Shigure greeted their young housekeeper with, as she entered the dining room with the rest of dinner.

Tohru blushed and moved to serve Brennan who gently snatched the dish out of her hand and began serving himself. He was still angry at himself for putting Tohru in danger and couldn't look her in the eye.

This was the first time that he had been transformed in front of her, at least since he had lost his memory. He could have killed her if Shigure hadn't shown up in time. She must have been terrified. He wondered if she was still a bit frightened of him. Had this happened before?

"Brennan-san?" A hand touched his and he looked up to see Tohru studying him, a worried expression on her face. "Are you ok?"

Brennan snatched his hand away, which made Tohru jump a little. Great! He did scare her. "I'm fine," he said, looking down at his food. He could feel Tohru's worried eyes on him, but he tried to ignore her. He knew she was probably figuring that she had done something wrong, but he didn't want to deal with that right now.

"Honda-san, this is delicious," Yuki said, getting her mind off of him.

Brennan gave the rat a quiet smile of gratitude and continued eating in silence. The others prattled on around him. Yuki half the time looked like he was going to explode if he had to spend a second longer with his brother. The boy really needed to learn to not be so serious. Kyo was taking Aaya's presence even worse. He spent the whole meal yelling at the snake to just shut up. Shigure looked like he was enjoying the whole thing. Tohru just smiled her way through much of the conversation, but Brennan noticed that occasionally her eyes would drift to him and there was a worried, sad look in them then.

Brennan finished eating before any of the others. Standing, he excused himself, stopping in the kitchen to drop his dishes in the sink. He was on his way to the door, when Tohru entered.

"Um, Brennan-san?" She lowered her head. "I'm so sorry. Please tell me what I've done to upset you."

Brennan shook his head. "You've done nothing."

She studied him. "You just seemed upset back there." She wasn't convinced.

Brennan turned his back on her. "I scare you, don't I?" he asked, his tone kept carefully neutral.

He heard a swift intake of breath and then a quivering voice replied. "I'm so sorry. I know that you would never harm me. I shouldn't feel that way. Please forgive me."

Brennan could hear tears in her voice. As he turned around, he saw them streaming down her face. With out thinking, he took a huge step towards her, right onto his injured ankle. Searing pain shot up his leg. He collapsed to the floor, swearing under his breath. Tohru rushed over to him.

"Are you ok?" she asked, sounding panicky.

Brennan looked at her smiling. "I'm ok, just stupid." He ran his hand through his hair and then carefully stood up, using the counter for support.

Tohru looked horrified. "You're not stupid," she quickly went on to say. "I am. I shouldn't be scared of you. I should trust you. You can't help it that. . ."

"Enough!" Brennan snapped gently. She may have been the one to help them all the time, but he was damned if he was going to let her get away with diverting his problems onto her own shoulders like she always did for everyone. "You didn't give me this curse. It had to have been something I did. So, don't go blaming yourself."

Tohru lowered her head to stare at the ground. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Brennan sighed in irritation. But before he could say anything Tohru cut in.

"What I was trying to say. . ." she said, quickly, never taking her eyes off the floor, "was that I'm not scared of you, but really. . .when you transform and have no control. I just don't see that form as being you, really." She quickly looked up at him.

Brennan gave a quiet smile. "It's a part of me, though," he said, softly, allowing a trace of sorrow to touch his voice.

Tohru's head snapped up and her eyes met his. He looked away and with out a word, transformed into the timber wolf from before. Tohru stiffened at the sight, but stood her ground. She seemed slightly nervous.

Brennan, the wolf, slowly stepped towards the housekeeper, never taking his eyes off of her. His yellow eyes were different than before. They were calm and comforting. He cautiously took a step towards Tohru. She didn't move, but instead slowly held her hand out. The human side of him feeling odd about this, the wolf licked the girl's hand.

Tohru smiled and scratched his ears. Brennan changed back, this time fully clothed. He carefully got to his feet and limped back over to the counter to lean against it.

"You've had to have seen me in this form before," Brennan said, studying her carefully. He wasn't sure if Tohru truly understood yet.

The young housekeeper shook her head. "Actually, I've never seen it." She looked down.

Brennan felt his eyes widen in shock. How could she not have? What had he been like before he met her? Had he been cold and horrible to her?

"Brennan-san?" Tohru called out tentatively. "I'm sorry." She hesitated, but went on quickly as she saw his irritated look. "I knew about your form. Hatori-san warned me about it when we first met. You weren't around, so you never knew. I don't think Hatori-san wanted to upset you."

Brennan didn't say anything. He was studying her in a different light now. She didn't act like he had treated her meanly or anything, but she wouldn't even if he had. She seemed to love unconditionally and would never treat anyone badly no matter how horribly they had treated her.

"Umm," Tohru began nervously. "I did my best not to bump into you or hug you because I didn't want you to worry about me and because it must be so frightening to not have control of yourself." She lowered her head and when she spoke again her voice quivered. "And now when you barely have any memory of who you are, I transform you and you're only worried about me. I'm so sorry."

Brennan limped over to her, ignoring the new pangs of guilt and worry that were consuming him. He slipped his hand under her chin and lifted her head so that she had to meet his eyes. He smiled at her gently. "Your clumsiness is one of your endearing traits. Don't apologize for it." With that, he limped away, glancing over his shoulder at her briefly. She was staring off in the distance as if thinking. He marveled again at how kind she was.

* * *

_Though head trauma is generally the cause of amnesia it can often be the cure of it--the only cure._

Brennan sighed, leaning back in the chair and brushing his hand across his face. He had been at this for hours. The book was simply not helping, but what did he expect, a miracle cure? So, the only reliable cure for amnesia was for him to bust his head against something. He felt like he could surely do that in frustration right now.

The book had also told him that the dreams of an amnesiac generally hold hints to the patient's past. But how could they be a hint when he couldn't remember them? He could barely remember the dream from the other night. Every time he came close to remembering a detail from it, his head would ache warningly. Something odd was going on. The book had mentioned that headaches were common, but only for major flashbacks. He was getting them for every flashback he had. What could it mean? What were Shigure and Hatori keeping from him?

Brennan looked at the clock.

8:15

He should go take a shower before work. Sighing, he stood up, slamming the book shut. Brennan walked over to his closet and pulled out his uniform for work, slipping it over his shoulder. From there, he crossed the room to his chest of drawers and pulled off the dog tags he always wore. The moment he let them go, an odd feeling swept over him. It was impossible to describe, but it made him feel edgy. Now he had graduated from head aches to weird feelings. That's all he needed.

Giving the dog tags one final look, Brennan left his room for the bathroom. Shigure had renovated this room for him so that it resembled a western bathroom. The writer had revealed one interesting thing about Brennan's past: he was half American. Brennan was grateful for the renovation. He did find it more comfortable than the bathroom downstairs.

Hanging his uniform on the towel rack, he started the shower, undressing as the water heated up. He stepped into the shower, sighing as the hot water hit his back. As he washed himself, he ran over everything he had been thinking of prior to the shower. If Hatori and Shigure were keeping something from him, what could it be and why would they do that? Did it have something to do with his curse?

Brennan sighed, closing his eyes. The curse. What was he supposed to do about it? How was he supposed to get rid of the curse if he couldn't even remember why he was cursed in the first place?

_"Can't remember!" A dark, angry voice filled his head. _

Brennan gasped. The odd feeling from earlier was filling him again. He grabbed his chest as it tightened painfully and then his head exploded in agony. Groaning, he collapsed to his knees. The hot water continued to rain down on him, but it could no longer soothe him like it had before.

_"You can't remember, Ravencloud!" A shadowy figure stood over him._

Brennan's reply was a cry of agony. He was shocked that he could even make a sound, since he could barely draw air through his constricted lungs. He felt his body slip to the floor of the shower.

_"The sins of the mother are carried down to the child." Dark hair, eagle feathers, angry eyes._

His eyes were rolling up in the back of his head. He couldn't hold onto consciousness much longer.

"Brennan!"

Was it Shigure? He found he didn't care much. All he cared about was the wonderful darkness that was seeping over him.

* * *

He slowly became aware of the sound of voices buzzing around him. He couldn't make out what they were saying or even their tone. It was like he was trapped underneath the ice of a frozen lake. He then became aware of a hand gripping his and the drip of something wet hitting his hand. 

He struggled to open his eyes, but to no avail. Something was holding him back from fully waking. What was it? What had happened? Something touched his face. It covered his nose and mouth. And then, as if someone had broken the frozen surface of the lake and pulled him out of it, he could hear the voices.

"This should help him. I should think that he will be skipping work tonight." That sounded like Hatori. Skipping work? He couldn't do that.

"I thought he was dying," a relieved voice replied nearby. It was Shigure. His voice sounded unusually shaky.

Whoever was gripping his hand let out a sob and a new shower of moisture rained down on his hand. He would have to stop this right now. Slowly, he opened his eyes. It looked like the whole house was gathered around him. To his left was Hatori, sitting in a chair, his face dark and unreadable. Behind him, stood Aaya who was studying both Hatori and Brennan with a concerned look. Shigure was standing at the foot of the bed, gripping the footboard and looking worried. Yuki and Kyo were hovering in the back of the room, their eyes shifting between Brennan and Tohru who was sitting to Brennan's right, holding his hand and trying hard to hold in her tears.

He opened his mouth to speak, but found that it was covered by an oxygen mask. What had happened? He remembered taking a shower and something odd happening, but he couldn't quite place what it was. But that wasn't his immediate concern. He needed to get Tohru to stop crying.

Smiling slightly, he squeezed the shaky hand in his own. A gasp greeted this gesture and then all eyes in the room fell on him.

"Brennan-san! You're all right!" Tohru exclaimed. Her eyes were wide and the tears that had yet to be spent glistened before trickling down her cheeks.

"Brei-san!" Aaya clasped his hands in front of him, his eyes wide with relief. "You really are all right?"

Brennan nodded weakly. He briefly wondered how long he had been out. His body felt like jello. He must have been in severe pain before passing out. He wished he could remember what had happened.

A hand touched his shoulder, Brennan turned his head and met Hatori's blue eyes. The dragon was smiling at him with one of his rare smiles. Brennan grinned back.

"I'm ok," he said, his voice sounding odd behind the mask. He was tempted to remove it, but doubted that Hatori would allow it. He also wasn't sure if that was a good idea. Breathing was coming easier for him more and more, but he wasn't sure that now was the right time to rid himself of the mask. He still felt a little light-headed and his chest was still a bit tight.

These were all symptoms of a memory flash, but there was something different about this one, something much more powerful and dangerous than the last one. An image flashed before his eyes and he gasped. Dark, angry eyes glared at him. Ravencloud! The dog tags! The sins of the mother. . .

"Brei-san, what is it?" Shigure asked, studying him as if he were afraid that Brennan was going to have a fit again.

Brennan shook his head. With some difficulty, he lifted his hand and slid the oxygen mask off of his face. He found he could breathe better now. "It's nothing," he elaborated, meeting Hatori's eyes.

Hatori nodded, turning the oxygen off and accepting the mask from Brennan.

"Brei-san, what happened?" Aaya asked in his usually too loud voice.

Brennan flinched at the volume. "What time is it?" he asked, turning his head away from the snake and wishing that everyone would just leave him alone. He wanted some time to ponder over what had happened.

"It's nearly 10:00," Yuki replied, coming over to stand by Tohru. Kyo followed. It was odd at how quiet he was being.

"10:00!" Brennan exclaimed, struggling to a sitting position. "I need to get ready for work."

"You'll do no such thing," Hatori said calmly, his tone suggesting that he was prepared for the battle of wills that was about to take place.

"I'm fine!" Brennan snapped back, reaching to throw the covers off.

"Um, Brei-san, I wouldn't do that, because. . ." Shigure began.

At the feel of the cold air hitting his bare skin and the sudden shriek from Tohru, Brennan realized what the writer had been about to say.

". . .you're naked," Shigure finished unnecessarily.

Brennan hurriedly pulled the covers back over him, glaring at the laughing writer. "Why don't you all leave and let me get dressed!" Brennan said through gritted teeth, squeezing Tohru's hand to let her know he appreciated her kindness.

Kyo and Yuki turned to go. Tohru was just starting to stand up when Hatori spoke. "You have been through some sort of ordeal. You need your rest," the doctor said, staring into Brennan's grey eyes.

Brennan met his gaze steadily. "I told you, I'm fine." Again, silent communication passed between the doctor and Brennan.

Hatori studied him a moment longer and then nodded. "Give us a moment," he said to everyone in the room.

Tohru squeezed Brennan's hand once and then she, Yuki, and Kyo left the room.

"Bet you, Haa-san wins this one," Shigure shot at Aaya before they left.

Aaya studied Brennan and Hatori for a moment, his face unusually somber. "I bet Brei-san wins this one," he shot back, shutting the door behind him.

"What is it?" Hatori asked, sliding the chair back from the bed a bit.

Brennan turned away, his back to the doctor. "You're keeping something from me, aren't you?" he asked, his voice tight.

The chair grinded across the floor again and the sound of soft footsteps told Brennan that Hatori had stood up. "What happened?" the doctor replied calmly, a note of tenseness coloring the question.

Flash

_The sins of the mother. . ._

Brennan shook his head to clear it. "Who is Anne Ravencloud?" he asked, slowly getting to his feet. He wobbled a bit, but was able to stand fully.

Hatori walked over to the chest of drawers by the bedroom door. He picked up the dog tags and studied them. Brennan made his way over to where Shigure had laid down his uniform, making sure to hide his limp. The shower had helped ease the pain in his ankle some. He slipped on the light blue shirt and tucked it into the navy blue pants, fastening the belt around his waist.

Brennan walked over to where Hatori stood examining the dog tags. The doctor handed them to Brennan. "You never told me who she was;" he said softly, "only that she was someone close to you."

Brennan threw the dog tags over his head. They slapped lightly against his chest. "I. . .think she was my mother." He gripped Hatori's shoulder. "I'm sorry that you have to carry the burden of my past: whatever happened then. I'm sorry that you feel you must keep it from me." Brennan met the doctor's eyes. "But know this: whatever has happened in my past will never change the fact that you are my friend. I will stand by you no matter what."

A wistful sort of smile crossed Hatori's face. "You think that gets you out of bed rest?" the doctor asked sternly, the smile disappearing, leaving traces of a smirk in its place.

Brennan grinned. "I'll be sure to get plenty of it after work."

"You had better," Hatori replied, holding out a packet. "Here's some more of that tea. Be sure to drink it before bed."

Brennan accepted the packet, setting it on top of his chest of drawers. "I promise," he said, walking to the door and opening it.

As soon as Brennan stepped into the hall way, he heard the rustle of money changing hands. Shigure walked over to him. "Brei-san. . ." he whined. "You just lost me quite a bit of money!"

Brennan smirked. "You shouldn't be betting in the first place."

Aaya flounced over, embracing Brennan in an enormous hug. "Thank you Brei-san. I knew you'd win. After all, Ha'ri can't argue with someone about something he does himself."

Hatori glared at the snake. Brennan met the doctor's eyes smiling. "Right. . .Let go of me."

Aaya released him and the four of them climbed down the stairs.

"I'll drive you to work," Hatori said, while they were pulling their shoes on. "You shouldn't be riding that motorcycle after what you went through."

Brennan met his eyes and debated. That would mean that Hatori would have to come pick him up at three in the morning when he should be sleeping. At the same time, Hatori was letting him go to work. Still. . . "You don't have to do that. I can walk it. After all, Tohru does every time she works."

Aaya's eyes widened. "Oh yeah, you work at the Sohma building don't you? Security guard, isn't it?"

Brennan nodded. "Let me walk it," he said to Hatori. "You need to sleep as well."

Hatori stood. "Very well," he said, heading towards the door. "Just be careful."

Brennan followed him out the door. "I will," he said, turning back towards the door. "Good night," he called back to Shigure and Aaya before he left.

_Sins of the mother_. . .what could it mean? He pondered over that as he made his way slowly to work.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I'm not sure when the next chapter will be ready to be put up. I've started it, but I have sort of been in a writing slump lately. I'll do my best to get working on it. Thanks for reading. 


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